Plea deal: Former Newton County deputy to spend seven years in prison for causing blunt head trauma to 2-month old

The two-month-old girl was flown to Children's Mercy Hospital bleeding from the brain from hemorrhages too numerous to count.

The blunt head trauma to the infant was caused, purposely, by her father, former Newton County Deputy Kenneth Rush, who pleaded guilty today in Jasper County Circuit Court to felony child abuse.

Under a plea agreement with the Jasper County Prosecuting Attorney's office, Rush will spend no more than seven years in prison and that was the sentence Judge Gayle Crane handed him.

The plea came 15 days before Rush's trial was scheduled to begin.







The child abuse charge was originally filed after the child was taken to Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City.

The charge was detailed in the probable cause statement:

On December 19, 2017, Kenneth R. Rush's two-month-old child was taken (to) the hospital via EMS due to having breathing problems and what was believed to be a seizure.

Once at the hospital, (the child) was seen to have bleeding on the brain. Hospital staff decided to have (her) flown to Children's Mercy in Kansas City for further treatment.

Once at Children's Mercy, (she) was found to have too numerous to count intraretinal and preretinal hemorrhages.

Once those results were found, the Children's Mercy SCAN team was contacted to consult and further treat (the child). Medical staff with Children's Mercy advised the injury to (her) eyes was a result of non-accidental abusive head trauma.

Throughout the duration of the investigation, Mr. Rush acknowledged he was the cause of the injuries to (the child), however, Mr. Rush's explanation of what had happened to (her) while (she) was in his car changed several times from nothing happened to he tripped and fell while holding (her) to he was tossing (her) in the air and catching (her) and finally to he was bouncing (her) while (she) was laying on the couch.

Rush, a 14-year law enforcement veteran came to the Newton County Sheriff's Department in February 2017 from Bates County. He began his career with the Butler Police Department in 2003.
The trial for Rush, who is being held in the Jasper County Jail on a $750,000 cash-only bond, is scheduled to begin October 16.

Rush, a 14-year law enforcement veteran, came to the Newton County Sheriff's Department in February 2017 from Bates County. He began his career with the Butler Police Department in 2003.